Best ways to buy top tech for the OlympicsGet set for London 2012 without spending a fortune

12 July 2012

It's just two weeks until the start of the Olympic Games. If you're not planning on travelling to London to see this summer's events, you may be considering buying a new TV, sound system or even a tablet to get your sporting fix.

With this in mind, Which? guides you through the best ways to pay for new tech this summer.

Cut the cost of TVs on a zero interest credit card

You could save yourself a fortune by buying a TV on a 0%-on-purchases credit card. These offer up to 18 months of paying no interest on things you buy, provided you make the minimum payment.

If you were to buy the Which? Best Buy Samsung UE55D8000, costing around £1,750, you'd have to pay around £170 in interest on an average credit card charging 17.6% assuming you repaid over a year. You'd pay no interest at all on a Best-Rate 0% credit card.

Even a cheaper Best Buy television, such as the Samsung LE32C530, costing £579, would cost you around £35 more using an average credit card charging 16.9%, compared with a 0%-on-purchases card, which would cost you no interest at all.

Action point: Read our Best Buy television reviews

Repay your credit card in full each month

If you pay off your credit card in full every month and therefore don't pay interest anyway, you could be £100 better off using a Best Rate cashback credit card. These cards pay you a percentage of your spending as cash rewards.

The most generous cashback deal on the market, from American Express, pays 5% cashback on spending in the first three months, up to a maximum of £100. So the same £2,000 spent on your Amex cashback credit card would earn you £100 in cashback.

If you were to spend £549 on a 32GB Which? Best Buy Apple iPad3, that would net you almost £0 in cashback.

Action point: Read the reviews of 55 tablets tested and rated by Which?.

Protect your purchases under section 75

Paying for your new TV with a credit card comes with an extra benefit – items costing over £100 and up to £30,000 come with section 75 protection under the Consumer Credit Act. This means that if there is a problem with your new television set or the retailer goes bust before the TV is delivered, you can put in a claim to your credit card provider.

And you get the full section 75 protection even if you only pay a deposit on the card. Plus, section 75 cover doesn’t affect your existing consumer rights, for example under the Sale of Goods Act.

Action point: Find our more about

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